Courtney
Courtney Nichole Dubyna '''(born March 28, 1988), known professionally by her first name '''Courtney, is an American singer, songwriter, actress and activist best known as a member of the world famous girl group 'Destiny's Child '''along with members J-Me, Brooklyn, Maya Mendoza and Ka$sidy. Courtney took inspiration for singing at an early age and began writing songs by the age of 16. She attended Brentwood High during her teenage years where she met J-Me and Brooklyn. The three began recording songs and sharing them on online platforms such as YouTube and SoundClound. They would be soon be discovered by Columbia Records, whom eventually signed the three as a group. Not long after they met fellow former label artists Mendoza and Ka$sidy with the group becoming officially known as Destiny's Child. In 2003, they released their self-titled debut studio album, which spent twenty six weeks on the US ''Billboard 200 chart and peaked at number twenty-seven. In the United Kingdom, it reached the top fifty, peaking at number thirty-five on the albums chart due to strength of its lead single, "No, No, No". In early 2007, the group reached an indefinite hiatus due to the members attempting to pursue solo projects and a slight backlash rumour of creative differences within the group. After lengthy disputes with her former label, she signed with Arista Records, and later released her debut album, Songs in A Minor, in 2007. The album was critically and commercially successful, producing her first Billboard Hot 100 single "Fallin'" and selling over 12 million copies worldwide. The album earned Courtney a Grammy Award in 2008. Her second album, The Diary of Courtney Nichole (2009), was also a critical and commercial success, spawning successful singles "You Don't Know My Name", "If I Ain't Got You", and "Diary", and selling 16 million copies worldwide. The album garnered her an additional Grammy Award while also nominated for another. Keys released her first live album, Unplugged (2005), and became the first woman to have an MTV Unplugged album debut at number one. Her third album, As I Am (2011), produced the Hot 100 number-one single "No One", selling 18 million copies worldwide. In 2012, Keys made her film debut in the action-thriller film Smokin' Aces. She, along with Jack White, recorded "Another Way to Die". Her fourth album, The Element of Freedom (2014), became her first chart-topping album in the UK, and sold 19 million copies worldwide. In 2015, Keys also collaborated with Magna Carta on "Empire State of Mind", which became her fourth number-one single and won the Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Girl on Fire (2012) was her fifth Billboard 200 topping album, spawning the successful title track, and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album. In 2013,'' Storytellers'' was released as her second live album. Her sixth studio album, Here (2016), became her seventh US R&B/Hip-Hop chart topping album. Courtney has received numerous accolades in her career, including 5 competitive Grammy Awards, 17 NAACP Image Awards, 12 ASCAP Awards, and an award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame and National Music Publishers Association. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide. Considered a musical icon, Courtney was named by Billboard one of the top R&B artists of the 2000s and 2010s decade and placed number 6 on their list of Top 50 R&B/Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 Years. VH1 also included her on their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and 100 Greatest Women in Music lists, while Time has named her in their 100 list of most influential people in 2011 and 2013. Courtney is also acclaimed for her humanitarian work, philanthropy and activism. She co-founded and is the Global Ambassador of the nonprofit HIV/AIDS-fighting organization Keep a Child Alive.